Local advisory committee urges changes to proposed State “Zone 0” rules to protect tree canopy and biodiversity

Members of the Community Forest Advisory Committee and the Los Angeles Fire Department presented a joint report to the Public Safety Committee on Sept. 17 urging the Board of Forestry to revise draft “Zone 0” regulations that would impose a five‑foot noncombustible perimeter around structures in very high fire hazard zones.

Cindy Chippock, a CD 13 resident and member of the Community Forest Advisory Committee, said the draft regulations — developed from research and examples drawn largely from Northern California — would require removal or severe pruning of vegetation and could lead to loss of at least 1,800 acres of trees within the city, according to LA County GIS estimates. “The consequences of this are significant,” Chippock said, citing heat‑island, biodiversity loss, slope stability and costs to residents and the city.

The advisory…